Rude Awakenings
by thrownhammer
Summary: [COMPLETE] After Lumen and Dexter leave where the Barrel Girls are dumped, he takes her to get cleaned up and help get her on her feet. It felt like a week went by in between the night Dex saved Lumen and when they had breakfast at the cafe, this is during that time. I loved Chapter One, I think it's my best work. If you like it I have other Dexter works. Rated M
1. Chapter 1: Rude Awakenings

Rude Awakenings

Not knowing what else to do, or where else to take my newly acquired damsel in distress I, Dexter the Dark Defender, chivalrously suggested a cheap hotel. She insisted on the same one she was at before, I guess out of some misplaced since of safety or familiarity. Unfortunately the human smoke stack that was working there when I got her luggage was still there. She made me prepay for a month, even though it was a by the week place and I was sure that she charged me more than the normal amount. I had used all my cash earlier and I had to put it on my Dinner's Club card.

I had every intention of fleeing the scene as soon as I saw her step through the door way, but she just looked in the room nervously and twisted her hands, which would have made me look diabolical, but considering a stiff breeze might blow her away it mainly just made her look like a child about to soil themselves which was probably more to the point. The way she had her knees slightly bent and her constant shifting from one foot to the other made her look neurotic to boot. She timidly looked into the room and then to me pleadingly. It was night time and the room was dark.

"I know that look well, no need to ask. I am a father of small children and that makes me a professional boogieman slayer…" I turned on all the lights as I went and I looked under the bed, opened the closet door, and checked the bathroom.

As soon as I came out of the bathroom she darted inside, now apparently afraid of the outdoors. She shut, locked and chained the door thereby cutting off my only escape route. I was fifteen feet from her and she just closed the door but I could already smell her. I can smell decomp all day at work, but body odor I find thoroughly repugnant. I know it wasn't her fault but the horrid stench of months without bathing was turning my stomach upside down.

"D-Dexter?" she asked nervously.

"Yes?" to pat my own back; I gave every ounce of effort to not sound annoyed, sarcastic, or projectile vomit as soon as my mouth opened.

"I-I need _things_. I don't have a wallet, or money or a cell phone, or even anything to pawn. I don't have a way to buy _things_…"

"What _things_? Like a toothbrush and hair brush?" she nodded vigorously reminding me of my son Cody.

She started shifting her feet again and wringing her hands, "I mean I have money, but I can't get to it…"

I nodded, "that's okay. We will tackle that problem next. Make me a list and I will go get what you need and dinner while you shower. You can use the sample bottles until I get back. Are you going to be alright for a few minutes?"

She went to bite her nails and there wasn't anything left to bite, she nodded rapidly. She went to the little desk in the room and got a pen and hotel stationary and rapidly started writing, and writing and writing… She went on so long I wondered if it would be impolite to step out for some fresh air, but luckily as I was about to cave she ripped the paper off the pad. It was numbered one through thirty-five. She must have seen my dismay, "I can p-pay you back. For all of it..."

"It's not that," I lied, "I usually alphabetize my lists…" She actually gave a small snort, nearly a laugh at this, which for some reason pleased me.

"No, you don't…"

I laughed, "I really do."

"Well, I think it's all on the same isle."

"I'll take the key in case you're still in the shower when I get back," she nodded nervously. Every time I stepped to the door she did to, I wondered if I could use this tactic to get her under running water. It looked like her trepidation was building again, I pulled out the knife I had given her previously and she instantly recoiled. "I'm going to leave you this, this kind you can flip open with your thumb and a flip of the wrist, watch… like this. It's locked open now, so it can't close. You press this silver part when you fold it. Try it a few times…" she did. "Okay, now just don't cut me again… go shower."

I went to the nearest Walgreens, passing a CVS on the way; you see I have an abnormal hatred for acronyms. Maybe it's because acronyms were going to be responsible for my eventual visit to the electric chair, because let's face it; Miami Metro was never going to catch me. Everything on her list was health and beauty related. It wasn't alphabetical, but it did have some semblance of order, she listed the items according to value. Cheapest items were first starting with lip balm. She would win the car if she was ever a contestant on the Price is Right. It did make me start to fear the end of the list though as the prices for things kept going up. Everything was generic except for Herbal Essence Shampoo, but anything that made her smell better I was in favor of. Permethrin cream was near the end of the list and two short years ago I would have had no earthly idea what it was, but small children and apparently kidnapping victims were magnets for lice. I bought a pack of combs as well; apparently she didn't know they went hand in hand.

I swear the next time I want to torture someone I will buy some of the nice shiny tools Revlon makes. I thought I was aware of every device capable of inflicting pain imaginable but I felt as though a whole new world had been opened to me…

The last three items had me stumped though, something about First Step, One Response, and Home Access. When I finally found them I was floored, the first two were pregnancy tests and the last was an at home collection kit for HIV testing. I thought I had been Daring Dashing Dexter that had rescued the Darling, Damsel in Distress. The truth was that she was still a prisoner, only now of her own body. The pregnancy tests were of the five minute variety. The HIV test had to be taken back and sent to the lab, it took twenty-four hours at least. Talk about a long day…

The old woman that checked me out was flummoxed by my 39 items, her 35 plus the combs, vitamins, and Ensure that weren't on Lumen's list, as well as one impulse buy. I'm sure she was use to the nervous new husband buying tampons but this looked crazy even by my standards, I mean what woman needed ALL of this stuff at once. After the tenth time she looked up I offered, "They're for my sister… she just got out of prison…" the old biddy looked horrified, "but she said she found love for Jesus while she was there so some good came of it all," this seemed to placate her 'inner church lady' which I am convinced is a Dark Passenger in a fuzzier looking but more evil form. Maybe I will start on Church Ladies when I finish ridding the world of serial killers.

That excuse worked until she got to the HIV and pregnancy tests and she raised an eyebrow, "Well to think of it, she did write to me about him. Maybe it is actually a guy named Jesus (Heyzeus)? They do allow conjugal visits now…" she scoffed and hurled the last two tests into the bag looking utterly scandalized. I made a mental note to never go in here with Deb or Lumen and collected the multitude of bags and departed.

I got back to the hotel to find Lumen sitting in exactly the same spot in the same appalling condition I found her. I expected her to be jumpy or to try and attack me or something but she just turned and looked at me with the saddest doe eyed expression, her huge brown eyes gently blinking at me. Something wasn't right; I knew there wasn't a driver behind the wheel. "Earth to Lumen? Lumen, it's Dexter, I'm back. Are you in there?"

She blinked her eyes rapidly three or four times and looked at me confused and afraid, "What?"

"It's Dexter… are you okay?" I put the plethora of bags on the bed.

"Uh, yeah… you're back already?"

"I've been gone almost two hours…"

"Oh. I kind of shut down now if no one is around, kind of like hibernation. Sorry. Did you have any trouble?"

"No, I have everything and more." I realized that she had in fact moved while I was gone, she had taken off her blouse and jeans and put back on the rag I found her in. I pointed at it, "I think you're moving in the wrong direction. Why did you even bring that thing with you?"

"It's a reflection of my inner self…? Maybe they can get DNA from it? I'm wearing it because I feel weird in clothes now. Everything is too rough…"

"I have an old under shirt in the car if you want it to sleep in?"

"Sure."

"Okay, I'll grab it in a minute. Why didn't you shower?"

"It makes me need to pee and…" she nodded to the bags.

"Okay, let's do this." I got the bag with the tests and opened the boxes, "These take five minutes, the other we have to turn in and it takes twenty-four hours at least. The antibiotics I gave you are the best thing out there and should take care of anything else… According to the box we are looking for a frowny face or a blue square; pee here and here and then fill up the cup and seal it."

She looked embarrassed but thankful at the same time. She excused herself and came back a few minutes later and put the tests on the makeup table and sat on the floor near it. A few minutes later my stomach nudged me, "It's time…"

"Can you, would you look?"

I walked over slowly and looked at them both, "well, if we were on a TV commercial this would be horrible news. You're not pregnant. You need to check again ten days from the last incident though," she nodded.

"God, I was so worried. I don't know if I could have… fixed it. I always thought that I would never be able to do that… I thought if I was raped and got pregnant that I would have it, but in this case I wouldn't even know which one was the father. You sure you don't want to eat first, you must be starving?"

Something in the way I swallowed at the thought of food, trying to keep from vomiting, finally showed on my face.

"Oh my God, I stink don't I? I have to smell like a dead body or something?"

I nodded rapidly. "First if you want, I'll show you how to do an ad hoc rape kit, to collect DNA evidence. Here let me show you how, and then I'll let you decide when you get in there. We should put that shirt in a bag as well. Now shower…"

"I might be a long time?"

"Take your time… I know I would. I'll grab that shirt…" I dawdled at my car for an obscene amount of time to let the room air out. I knocked on the bathroom door which elicited a tiny "yip" from her, "Is it okay if I open the door to put the clothes on the floor?"

"Yeah, you can leave it open if you want. I think I would rather be able to hear you…"

"I brought some clean boxers and a bowling shit too. Take your time…"

When she finally came out of the shower almost all the shampoo was gone and her skin was pink all over from over scrubbing. Dexter didn't notice, he long ago eaten his pickle and chips and fell asleep with his head on the small table. She was unsure on how to wake him up and she gently rubbed her hand on his shoulder, his eyes fluttered open and he saw the halo of blond hair with the light behind her and she was wearing his work shirt.

"Hey, you…" I said in my distinctive lover voice everyone has. I was waiting for the customary 'hey, you' back in that cooing voice that used to drive me up the wall but that I now love so much.

"Hi," came from a deeper voice than normal. "Sorry, Earth to Dexter… It's Lumen…" she realized who I thought she was and I could tell that she felt horrible.

I lifted my head and reared it back in a very Deb like way, "wow, sorry. You shine up well, there was a woman under all of that… Okay, well you neglected to tell me what you wanted for dinner, so I made the indomitable selection of the best culinary advancement since fire: the Medianoche sandwich. A Medianoche consists of roast pork, ham, mustard, Swiss cheese, and dill pickles. It is a close cousin to the Cuban sandwich, the chief difference being that a Medianoche is made on soft, sweet egg dough bread similar to Challah rather than on crustier Cuban bread. Like the Cuban sandwich, the Medianoche is typically warmed in a press before eating and is universally known as one of the Culinary Seven Wonders of the World. The other six wonders were easily forgotten once the Medianoche came into being. It is also the second best driving food behind bananas."

This time she reared her head back, "well okay, that's some endorsement. I'm game." After a few bites she looked at the bag, then in it and pulled out the receipt. "Fifteen dollars for a ham and cheese sandwich on stale flat bread?"

I was flabbergasted at her wholesale rejection of mans greatest culinary achievement, "…well it's a lot better hot!"

"Well after your stunning introduction I was amped for something that would cause an epiphany or an earth shattering change in my inner self. What does Medianoche mean anyway, Mediocre?" she giggled slightly at the horrified expression on my face and she brushed loose hair behind her ears and for the first time he saw her as she must have been before she was taken.

"No, it means Midnight. In Havana it's served in night clubs as a snack."

"All I know is that if I spent fifteen dollars on a ham sandwich I would feel like I was being ra-" and just like that the moment of laughing and the twinkle in her eye was gone. "Look, it's late Dexter and I have a lot to do tomorrow. I need to get some money wired so I can pay you back and I need to set up a PO Box. I need someplace for them to mail my new debit cards and checks and everything to. I need to get a rental car, a computer, and a phone too."

"Okay, well dinner was a bomb but try this… on for size," I pulled the fluffy teddy bear out of a bag that I had put to the side earlier, hiding it. She immediately gave me an 'as if' look. "Yeah, you say that now but wait until tonight… I looked for a body pillow but they didn't have them there. But, he's here if you need him." I placed it on the bed near her and turned the knob to leave.

"Dexter? Thank you, it was sweet, really. I would have killed to have a Teddy in that hole I was in." I turned back to see that she was crying freely, "Can I ask one question and get a truthful answer?" I know I looked wary of the deal, but I nodded. "Will I ever really see you again? It's just that I don't know anyone at all here and I would rather you tell me…"

I looked at her solemnly, knowing if I hadn't have come in to search the room that I never ever would have come back. I looked at the door knob and back to her and rocked on the balls of my feet, "tomorrow morning, 7:00am sharp at the café across the street. I need to be at work at eight, but I can drop you by the bank."

"Thank you, for everything…"

She had subtly stuck her foot in the preverbal door of my life and I know that I wouldn't be easily rid of her. I turned and left, wondering if Harry was right? Should I have just left her to die? I thought this was going to be an easy situation to rectify but I was in for a rude awakening… it was going to be murder.


	2. Chapter 2: Sugar High

Sugar High

I, the Dashing yet Debonair Dexter, really had no idea if Lumen Ann Pierce would show up at the coffee shop. Don't get me wrong, I knew that she would want to be there but I was hoping that she overslept. She had a nice although critically reviewed meal, a long hot shower, clean clothes, cold AC, and a nice soft bed… I didn't think it to be an unreasonable desire for the poor thing to have some well deserved beauty sleep. But right before I rounded the corner I heard her voice and I let out a deep sigh and tried to adjust the muscles in my face from bitter disappointment into something resembling a smile and strode around the corner.

"Hi there grumpy Gus… Someone's not a morning person!" Lumen faked a pout at me as a slid into the booth.

I had never in a million years expected this drastic of a change in her. She was vibrant, smiling, and friendly. She had curled her hair somehow, was wearing makeup, and was extremely out going and precocious. I saw she had a newspaper and had done the crossword and Sudoku puzzle already. The only evidence of the woman I saw from last night was the visible cuts on her hands, neck and face, as well as her shaking hands.

"Wow, Lumen… you look beautiful and chipper," and I thought to myself, 'and really creepy scary…' and had to wonder if I got my knife back from her.

She grabbed my hand, squeezing it very tightly and started talking _really_ fast: at almost teenage girl speed, "Oh my God, I feel _so_ incredible you just don't understand! I couldn't sleep so I went outside and I was sitting in front of the hotel and I was bored and so picked up this scratch off ticket to scratch the other thingies off but didn't have any fingernails or a coin to scratch it with so I looked at it before throwing it down and someone had won a hundred and fifty dollars and lost it or threw it away! So, here is a hundred dollars for you and I went to Wal-Mart and bought these clothes because they're really soft because my skin is really sensitive, this necklace, a curling iron, OH and some sugarless gum …oh, and a newspaper! I ate like three times too! Everything tastes _so_ good; I thought I would never enjoy eating again after…" she broke of suddenly and I interjected quickly…

"Wow, that's great!" I tried to seem happy but she saw right threw it and the smile fell instantly from her face and now resembled a Salvador Dali painting.

"What? I don't know you that well Dexter… but what is it?" she said at a normal rate of speech.

"I am really happy that you are enjoying it and you should, but I feel like I should warn you that it won't last."

"What? Why not! I want to feel like this forever! I want to live life!" she practically yelled.

The waitress came over, "Hey there, coffee?" I nodded and she flipped over the cup and filled it, Lumen pushed her cup to her, "Sorry Lu, I told you that you're cut off. I never thought I would have to refuse someone coffee…"

"Awe, come on Maxine… we were doing so well!" she pouted in jest.

"Are you her designated driver?" I nodded wearily. "Okay, one more but this is it!" Lumen clapped and the waitress laughed as she filled her cup and walked off.

"Lumen," I waited for her to look at me, "your body was putting off massive amounts of endorphins to offset the things that were happening to you so you could cope. Now the bad things are gone and the endorphins are still coming, sort of like adrenalin."

"So, I will level off at some point?"

"A steep crash is more likely."

Her mouth hung open, which reminded me of my sister Deb. "How long do I have Dexter?" she said it as though a Doctor had just told her she had cancer.

I shrugged shamefully hoping the answer was thirty seconds, "I have no idea, but you'll know when it happens. Not to rain on your parade though, you deserve it. Go do fun things today, chores can wait."

"Okay, what should I do?" she looked at me expectantly.

"Well the hypersensitivity is part of it, you know about touch and taste. Try the music store where you can listen to whatever you want, or the planetarium or 3d movie for visual, or a candle store or something for smell."

"Wow, that's great! Those are great ideas! I feel like bungee jumping or parachuting or something… something crazy!" she smiled expectantly.

"Not a lot of bungee options in Florida, for parachuting you have to take a class first," she fake pouted again. "Parasailing might be what you're looking for. It's where you are in a parachute being pulled by a boat…" she started shaking her head.

"No, not for me, no sir…'the Lumen' doesn't do water. I have no boobs, zero percent body fat, and can't swim. So, basically I'd sink like a stone."

"The Lumen can't swim? Who can't swim? Aren't you from the Land of 10,000 Lakes, or is that Michigan?"

"The Lumen, for one, can't swim. Yes we have 10,000 lakes and if you are willing to blast through the ice with dynamite you might be able to swim for a few minutes before you start hearing Celine Dion."

"Ah, okay. Why are we 'The Lumen' now anyway?"

"Why not, haven't you ever been 'The Dexter?"

"No, some people at work call me Dexterous, I put up with it hoping it will go away, but it hasn't. Some people call me Dex, I think its okay for my family to call me that, but with people I hardly know it irks me."

"Yeah, a lot of people call me Lu. Girls I'm okay with calling me that, but not men. I feel like it strips me of my femininity, my fiancée used to call me that and it irked me to no end. My name is weird enough without people butching it up."

"Okay, well how about a sunset on the ocean? You want to go out on my boat?"

"You have a boat?" she sounded wary. "Is it a big boat?"

"It's about five Lumens long…"

"That sounds huge! Will you go more slowly if I get scared?" she asked seriously.

"Absolutely I would. So, I need to go in to work for a bit but, I will cut out early. Get a swim suit or something while you're out and we will go after work."

"We can't go in the dark and I can't go in the water and I really _can't_ wear a suit…"

"I go after work more than any other time, the sunset over the water is incredible. Yes, you can go in the water, if I can teach a newborn to swim in the ocean, I can teach you. No one will be around to see you in your suit but me, and I've seen you already… Trust me it will be fun."

So, Lumen got me to drop her at the bank, she was convinced she would be able to get money out without checks or ID of any kind. She still had some of her fifty dollars left for a cab, so I humored her.

At about three I was able to sneak away even though work was unbelievably crazy. I had been out on leave for ten weeks and a mountain of reports to write had piled up. I grabbed a foot of them and hit the door. I met Lumen at her room; as soon as I pulled up she ran out and locked the door. I was pleased to see that she looked very beach worthy in loose fitting shirt and shorts over what appeared to be a green and white stripped bathing suit and was wearing sunglasses.

She got in and immediately grimaced and curled her nose at the stench, "what the hell is that…" I looked at her sideways and couldn't help but look irritated. "Oh my God, that's from me?" I watched in secret delight as she turned green, then I backed the SUV out and sped off with the windows down. "Christ! It's wasn't like that this morning!"

"The car's been in the hot sun all day. Sorry, I tried Fabreze but it didn't do anything…" I didn't know why I sounded embarrassed; it was her doing after all.

"God, that's horrid. How could I not smell that?" she asked as she unscrewed a bottle of suntan lotion and held it under her nose.

I couldn't help but laugh having seen Astor do the same thing to avoid a noxious vapor from Harrison one day. "Here," I handed her some Vic's Vapor Rub from my center console, blot a dab of that under your nose."

"Hey that works thanks!"

So, I still had to coax my skittish charge onto my boat, "it will be fine." I offered her a hand, but she stared at it as if afraid, so an extended an arm instead even though it felt stupid, I felt like I was a falconer or something. She took my forearm and climbed into the boat from the dock.

"Are you sure… five Lumen's long sounded a lot bigger…" she said looking warily up and down the length of the boat.

"She's plenty big enough, I've taken her to the Keys," she looked worried, "but we aren't going that far today. We are just going out far enough to see a nice sunset."

I piloted the craft for a few minutes until I saw her near the front of the boat clutching her chest and looking around frantically at the water. I throttled back and walked towards her; she back peddled in fear and almost flipped over the side. "Whoa! Lumen, it's me Dexter." She surveyed the horizon and looked petrified. "Lumen, I'm not going to hurt you. If I was going to I would've done it by now. Look at me…" she did so. "I know what you're thinking, you're out here with nowhere to run," she nodded. "Would I ever hurt you?" She thought about it and shook her head. "Okay, so look around… you can see seven miles in every direction. There is no one else out here…" she looked around again. "You're safe here, we can see people coming for miles and miles…"

"I'm… sorry. I just…" she said, calming down.

"It's okay. This is far enough anyway. Here, do you want my knife?"

She looked at it and shook her head, "No… I'm sorry Dexter."

"It's okay," I said as I lowered the ladder. "Let's get your first swimming lesson in. You'll want to leave your hat, glasses, and outer clothing though." I said as I stripped down to my bathing suit. She lost the hat and glasses, but paused at her top. I saw her staring at the huge scar on my side and I lifted the hem of my trunks so she could see the long trough of a bullet wound Sgt Doakes was kind enough to give me. "You're not the only one with scars; two of mine are truly heinous. I've seen them Lumen, they aren't as bad as you think." She seemed to accept that and ditched her top and shorts. Her bathing suit was one piece and she looked awkward in it and I wondered if she had ever owned a one piece in her life. I tied a loop of rope under her arms and tightened it. She was shaking slightly, but allowed me some leeway. I tied off the other end of the rope to a cleat and I climbed down the ladder and motioned her down.

"Sh-shouldn't I have a life vest or something?"

"Not for now, you only have a foot of slack on that rope and you have me here. Let me show you how this works. She lowered herself into the water and I showed her that if she went under that she only had to pull on the rope and that she couldn't be more than a foot underwater. We spent the next hour or so treading water until she felt comfortable with it. Then she let me talk her into taking the rope off for thirty seconds.

"Dexter, you promise you aren't going to pull up the ladder or scare me somehow?" she asked, still holding the rope apprehensively.

I looked at her and didn't even have to fake sympathy, "If there is one person on Earth that deserves to never be scared again it's you. Come on, give me thirty seconds…"

She looked at me in adoration and let go of the rope. I looked at my watch as the time ticked down. "You're almost there… Okay, ten more seconds… tick… tick… tick…" Her eyes widened and her muscles seemed to lockup. She sank below the surface and for a moment I thought she was playing until she started thrashing around. I was still holding onto the ladder and I stuck one foot out and lifted her up with it. She pulled herself over to me and grabbed me around the neck for dear life and out of nothing but instinct I wrapped my arm around her but she didn't seem to mind, apparently her fear of water temporarily vetoed her fear of men.

She sputtered and blinked the water out of her eyes, "sorry…"

"No big deal. What was that about?"

She looked me in the eyes from just a few inches away, her mouth opened and then closed, she shook her head no. I smiled, "its okay. You don't have to share. Do you know why I wanted to teach you to swim?" I asked, suddenly aware of the heat of her skin and the closeness of her face, we were practically kissing.

"So, I wouldn't drown?"

"Yes, but that wasn't the primary reason. I brought you here to teach you to trust again. Thanks for trusting me. I know that's a huge step for you…"

I saw her stare at my lips, an indication that she was thinking about kissing me and then just as suddenly I saw the fear start to creep back into her eyes, "Come on Lumen, let's go…" I climbed the ladder and helped her up. "We have a few minutes until sunset." I handed her a towel as I dried off myself.

We sat on the bow for a few minutes in a comfortable silence, watching the sun sink lower. After many long minutes admiring the oranges, reds, and pinks she said sadly, "… I never thought I would see one again," I looked over and she was crying silently. "It's happening Dexter… I can feel it slipping away, I want to hold onto it but I can't... Can we go home? I want to go home…"

I got up quickly, "Yes, we can go. Come sit up here, it feels great facing into the wind; I'll even let you sing that song from Titanic…"

She laughed at that, "yeah, for good luck…"

I sped us back to the marina and the trip seemed to help hold her together until we got to the shore. I secured the boat as fast as possible and made a mental note to top off the fuel later; I always kept it full in case of emergencies.

I took her back to her hotel and walked her to her door and I knew she was coming apart at the seams; she looked like she was going to collapse. "Lumen, did you want me to stay with you for awhile?" I was worried, but didn't really want to stay. She shook her head 'no' vigorously and after the fourth time she fumbled the keys while trying to open the door I picked them up and opened the door for her. She darted in and slammed the door and locked it.

Not knowing what else to do I offered, "See you for breakfast again tomorrow?"

I could tell she was leaning against the door as she choked out, "Okay. Bye." I heard her slide down the door and then there was a small wailing sound.

I was in a foul mood the entire way home; I couldn't bring myself to think of anything else that night no matter how hard I tried. I even resorted to watching TV, but the incessant whining of everyone complaining about how horrible their lives were, separated by ads for things that you just 'couldn't live without', simply served to remind me how trivial those things were and how great everyone had it. Even I was guilty of it.

For two months I had lamented my wives death and my role in it, but the reality was that she had been granted a quick and easy death. The shear thought of Rita being in the clutches of these animals for months before being butchered and stuffed into a barrel filled me with such rage I thought it best to avoid public restrooms for the rest of the day. Trinity had preformed a mercy killing by comparison. I had previously lamented having killed him quickly, without having known she had been murdered, because I thought that I would have extracted some sort of due vengeance over the course of many hours. But no amount of torture, sort of the Spanish Inquisition, could equal what Lumen had endured. Lumen had robbed me of my hatred of Trinity, now I merely pitied him. Arthur Mitchell wasn't a monster; he was a pathetic loser that preyed on women, kids, and drunks. The men that had taken Lumen were real monsters. They were monsters the likes of which the world rarely sees and then usually they do appear in groups, each feeding off of the others. They were another sad example of Hitler's willing executioners, monsters that cohabitate often cause escalation, where as if they remained loners the damage they inflected would have been negligible.

Sleep, something that was usually a given for me, was elusive. I gave up around 4am and went running and had my usual blistering shower and hardy breakfast and was out the door by six. I obviously got to the café early and Lumen wasn't there yet. I waited thirty minutes, until five after seven before I paid my tab and crossed the street. I found myself walking faster and almost started running at the end. I half expected to find her in the tub with her wrists slit. I knocked on the door, just a knuckle rap the first time and then ratcheted up until I reached full fledged banging. I let myself in with my key and looked around, the bed hadn't been slept in and I reluctantly walked to the bathroom, "Lumen? It's Dexter…" the door was open and the light was on but the tub was thankfully empty, but her toothbrush and things were still here.

I walked to the phone and dialed the desk, "Yes, any messages? No? Thanks…" for nothing' I thought. I sucked on my back molar for a moment and hoped she had just gone to Wal-Mart or something.

I reluctantly went to work for what seemed like the longest day of my life. I looked for Jane Doe's and suicides and none matched her description. I tried to call the room a few times with no luck.

After my internment I sped over to the motel in a way that even other Miami motorists deemed reckless. I knocked twice and there was no answer, so I let myself in again. Everything looked the same as it had before, but I started tearing the place apart. I ripped the sheets off the bed, sifted through the remains of her 39 miscellaneous items… wait there were only 38, there was no teddy bear, nor had there been one this morning. I flung open the closet door to see if it was in there and heard and "eek" noise from the bottom of the closet. She was wedged into the bottom corner of the closet in a nest of pillows and sheets, she was clutching the bear tightly and her eyes were huge and frightened.

"Lumen, it's me, Dexter. Have you been in there the whole time? Since yesterday…"

She nodded meekly.

"You have to eat something…"

She shook her head and seemed to turn a light shade of green.

"Come on Lumen, you'll be safe with me. I need to eat; if you don't come, you'll be here alone…"

She stayed inside and closed the door as an answer.

"Okay, well… I'll meet you in the morning for breakfast okay?" She gave no answer, so I left and got in my car and as I started the engine, I saw her bolt out of the room. She dove into the passenger seat before the car door was even open all the way. She buckled up and pulled her knees up to her chin, making a defensive ball.

I honestly didn't expect her to speak and was mildly shocked when she did, "… so you said those Medianoche sandwiches are better hot?"


End file.
